Ah, to tank. To surrender on the court, even if to go on selling tickets and peanuts at full retail. To willingly, even eagerly, swan dive into a drained swimming pool. It may not convey any semblance of competing, but the suits in the front office convince themselves the fans’ emotional scars will heal in time.
We often hear charges of tanking in sports. But the term often is misapplied. Athletes may lose their drive, but they seldom tank to the point of intentionally losing, unless gambling is involved, but there’s not a lot of channeling of the 1919 Chicago White Sox going on any more. Coaches seldom tank because most don’t have enough job security where they can concern themselves with draft positioning.
So who tanks? Owners who can slash payroll and let veterans walk. General managers who are empowered to trade starters for “assets,” a word to be used later in sentences like, “Sure, we lost to Miami by 37. But look at our clean spread sheet! Look at our assets!”
Which leads me to the Hawks. Two weeks ago they lost their best player, Al Horford, for the season. They won their next game against Charlotte, but since have lost four of five games, including three consecutive, going into Wednesday’s game against league-leading Indiana (27-6 — not tanking).
Until now, the Hawks have been an interesting team to watch in these early stages of the Danny Ferry/Mike Budenholzer takeover. They play hard. They play smart. They keep games close, even if they’re limited in mid-makeover because of their modest talent and depth. With Horford gone, the limited bar has been lowered.
Ferry, the general manager, has three choices: 1) Try to trade for a player in hopes of filling the void up front; 2) Ride it out and maybe even make the playoffs in the weak Eastern Conference (the Hawks are third overall despite being 18-17); 3) Trade one or more of the roster’s remaining regulars for younger and cheaper players and/or draft picks.
No. 2 could be perceived as tanking. No. 3 definitely would be, and the Hawks wouldn’t be the first. The Chicago Bulls, who recently lost Derrick Rose for the season (again), basically hung a “Going Out of Business Sale” sign when they traded Luol Deng to Cleveland on Monday for cap space (the expiring contract of Andrew Bynum, who unofficially expired years ago).
Based on their transactions, several teams, including Boston, Utah, Philadelphia, Milwaukee and Phoenix, seemed intent on tanking before the season started, even if things haven’t gone as expected (the Suns are 20-12 despite ranking 29th in total payroll.
The reason for the intentional face-plants is obvious: This year’s NBA draft is projected to be as strong as any in recent years, with more than a half-dozen projected stars, including Kansas shooting guard Andrew Wiggins and Duke small forward Jabari Parker.
(The Hawks already are ahead of the curve. The Joe Johnson trade brought them the option of swapping No. 1 picks with Brooklyn in this year’s draft and next year’s. The Nets have struggled at 13-21.)
So if you’re Ferry, do you sell off pieces of a scrappy but limited team, even if the year isn’t half over yet and you might make the playoffs.
This a sensitive topic, so I wasn’t surprised to get to vague and politically correct answers.
Question: Does Horford’s injury change your approach to the season?
Answer: “I think regardless of Al’s injury, we were in the mode of trying to add depth to the roster. If we see opportunities to do so, whether that’s with players or assets, we’ll have to look at all of our options.”
Question: Do NBA teams tank?
Answer: “Front offices can obviously look at the bigger picture, but coaches and players on the roster have a say in terms of how they play, year in and year out.”
Let me translate: “Yes, but no. But, kinda, yes.”
I commended Ferry for Ph.D. in vagueness. He laughed.
Question: Would the Hawks tank for a higher pick, now that Horford is done for the year?
Answer: “We are looking to continue to build a depth. There are different ways to do that. The draft. Trades. Free agency. We’ll look at those things now and in the summer.”
I could this all day. The problem is, so can Ferry.
It’s probably best just to watch how the next several weeks unfold. The trade deadline is Feb. 20. The Hawks are more than set up for deals. The roster is like prefab housing, with recyclable players on manageable contracts. No bad locker-room guys, no money pits. Paul Millsap and Lou Williams are signed only through next season. Jeff Teague and Kyle Korver have deals through 2016-17, but aren’t making ridiculous money.
“We’re in a position to be opportunistic,” Ferry said.
He added the Hawks “are not looking for quick fixes.” They’re more concerned with implementing a system and defining a culture.
These never were going to be the title-contending days anyway. So if somebody leaves town soon, don’t be surprised.
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